The Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association represents the downstream hydrocarbon industry in the Arabian Gulf and describes itself as the voice of the region's chemical industry. Established in 2006, it is headquartered at Vision Tower, Business Bay, Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, with a postal address of P.O. Box 123055, a switchboard on +971 4 451 06 66 and a fax line on +971 4 451 07 77.

Mandate, scale and membership

GPCA voices the common interests of more than 240 member companies from the chemical and allied industries, which the association says account for over 95 per cent of chemical output in the Arabian Gulf. It places the sector as the second largest manufacturing industry in the region, producing more than US$80 billion of products a year. The association works through advocacy, networking and thought leadership, and offers members access to research and industry data, marketing services, discounted rates at GPCA events and networking with senior industry figures. Companies join through a membership form, and the association also publishes a facts and figures section and a knowledge hub.

Committees and programmes

Member expertise is organised through six committees and a set of industry programmes:

  • Committees — plastics, Responsible Care, supply chain, research and innovation, international trade, and agri-nutrients.
  • Responsible Care, the chemical industry's health, safety and environment performance initiative.
  • The Gulf Process Safety Network, Gulf SQAS for supplier assessment and Operation Clean Sweep for pellet loss prevention.
  • Be The Change and Leaders of Tomorrow, aimed at younger professionals and future leaders.

A board of directors and a secretariat team, both listed on the website, govern and run the association.

Conferences and awards

The association's calendar is built around the Annual GPCA Forum, which it describes as a regional gathering of chemical industry leaders, supported by a series of specialised conferences: process safety, plastics, supply chain, agri-nutrients, research and innovation, Responsible Care, and a leaders forum. It also runs the GPCA Legacy Initiative and Awards, the GPCA Excellence Awards and student competitions, and publishes industry analysis through its knowledge hub. Attendance at the Annual Forum and the specialised conferences at discounted member rates is one of the benefits the association highlights in its membership offer.

Recent activity

The association continued to publish and convene through 2026, marking two decades since its founding with a 20-year anniversary identity. Articles published during the year examined the circular economy for plastics and the pressures on Gulf producers as the global petrochemical landscape shifts, including a January 2026 piece on GCC resilience and a February 2026 assessment of progress on plastics circularity. On 25 September 2026 GPCA announced that Hassan H. Al-Yami, chief executive of Petro Rabigh, had joined its board of directors, adding to the regional producer representation on the board.

Contact

The association handles enquiries through the contact form on its website rather than publishing a general e-mail address; the contact page carries only the postal address, telephone and fax numbers. Individual staff are listed on the GPCA secretariat team page. The association maintains presences on YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook and X, and publishes press releases and news items on its site.